Angularly adjustable, reversible ratchet wrench



May 31, 1955 R. c. HoPGooD 2,709,386

ANGULARLY ADJUSTABLE, REVERSIBLE RATCHET WRENCH Filed Oct. l, 1953 United States Patent ANGULARLY ADJUSTABLE, REVERSIBLE RATCHET WRENCH Roy C. Hopgood, Glen Ridge, N. J., assigner to The New Britain Machine Company, New Britain, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Application (Betober 1, 1953, Serial No. 383,590 7 Claims. (Cl. 231-61) My invention relates to flexible, universal-action ratcheting devices, particularly applicable as socket-wrench tools and sometimes known as flexratchets. The invention incorporates improvements and modifications over the structure disclosed in Karl E. Queitzsch Patent No. 2,660,911, and over the construction shown in Eugene M. Fruscella application, Serial No. 383,589, filed on even date herewith.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved device of the character indicated.

Another object is to provide a ratchet wrench of the character indicated, requiring fewer parts and thus costing less to manufacture.

A specific object is to meet the above objects with a construction in which one-way ratchet action can be reversed without requiring relative movement of ball-retaining parts.

Another specific object is to provide a ratchetng device of the character indicated in which the freedom for wrench action exceeds 90 degrees of angular adjustment of the handle axis with respect to the tool-actuating axis.

Other objects and various further features of novelty and invention will be pointed out or will occur to those skilled in the art from a reading of the following specification in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In said drawings, which show, for illustrative purposes only, a preferred form of the invention:

Fig. l is a view in longitudinal elevation of a flexible ratcheting device incorporating features of the invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional View taken in the plane 2*2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is another sectional view taken in the plane 3-3 of Fig. l;

Figs. 4 and 5 are fragmentary sectional views taken in the plane 4 4 of Fig. 3, but respectively showing the tool-actuating tang displaced to its two limits of angular adjustment; `and Figs. 6 and 7 are fragmentary, sectional views in the planes 6-6 and 7--7, respectively, of Figs. 4 and 5.

Briefly stated, my invention contemplates achievement of reversible ratchet action in exible ratchet devices (as described in the above-identicd copending applications) by eliminating certain parts which have previously required relative movement of the ball retainer or cage with respect to the handle in order to achieve reversal of ratchet action. With my device, ratchet action m-ay be reversed by merely providing a longer arcuate slot for the tool-attachment tang, the length being suflicient to permit selective placement of the tool-attachment tang, on one side or on the other side of the handle axis, as desired.

Referring to the drawings, my invention is shown in application to a ratchet tool comprising an elongated handle 10, one end of which may be provided with ballretaining means in the form of an enlarged head 11. The head or cage 11 may be formed integrally with the handle, but, for simplicity of manufacture, I have shown cage 11 as a separate piece secured, as by welding (suggested at 12), to the enlarged end 10 of handle 10. For

2,709,386 Patented May 31, 1955 in an arcuate slot 17 in the cage 11. For improved supin Fig. 4, ratchet engagement will be port and retention of the ball 15, the enlarged end 10 of the handle may be spherically recessed .at 18 (Fig. 2) and thus embrace a major lower area of the ball 15.

Pawl means 19 having a thrust-sustaining axis substantially normal to the plane including the slot 17 and the handle axis, may be carried by the handle and urged as by spring means 2t) for constant engagement with the ball 1S; spring means 20 is shown located in a small axial bore 13 within the end 10 of handle 10. In the form shown, the pawl and ratchet engagement is accomplished as a toothed engagement, the ball 1S being provided with a plurality of teeth Z1 cut generally as great-circle arcs in planes passing through theaxis of the tang 14 and shank 16.

The described parts are essentially those shown in the said Fruscella application, and the action is essentially the same. Thus, in the straight-on orientation of the tang 14 shown in Fig. 2, the pawl 19 may ride a flat 22 on ball 15 and thus have no ratcheting engagement with the ball 15. For this orientation, the width of lthe slot 17 may be slightly reduced by the formation of locally protruding wall elements 23 to accommodate the squared section of shank 16, as is best shown in Fig. 3. For this orientation, therefore, the handle will be locked to the tang 14, and no ratcheting action will take place.

In accordance with the invention, the slot 17, which in said other applications merely extends from the straight-on position to one side only of the handle axis, is now caused to extend to the other side of said axis; in the case shown, the slot 17 is of sufficient arcuate extent to accommodate placement of the tool-actuating tang as far as degrees to one side of the handle axis, as shown in Fig. 4, or if desired, as far as 90 degrees to the other side of said axis, as shown in Fig. 5.

It will be seen that universal ratcheting action may be achieved, not only for the extreme positions of Figs. 4 `and 5, but also for most intermediate angular orientations of the tang 1li with respect to the handle 10, except those close to the straight-on position. For placements of the tang 14 on the side of the axis of the handle 10 shown developed from the relation shown in Fig. 6; for this relation, the ratchet will escape for counter-clockwise movement of the handle 1t) with respect to the ball 15 and tang 14, but will drive the ball and tang for clockwise movement of ythe handle 10 about the tang axis, regardless of whether the tang axis is at the extreme 90-degree position with respect to the handle axis, or whether it lies at some reduced angle, except of course near the straight-on position discussed above. For adjustments of the tang to the other side of the handle axis (depicted in Fig. 5), the pawl 19 will have been eifectively reversed with respect to the drive axis, so that, as clearly shown in Fig. 7, the pawl will escape for clockwise movement of the handle with respect to the ball 15 and will drive for counterclockwisc movement of the handle with respect to the ball.

lt will be noted that, by suitably accommodating the over-all width of the ratchet tooth of pawl 19 to the effective span of the flat 22 on ball 15, the pawl 19 and flat 22 may cooperate for the straight-on position shown in Fig. 2 to serve a detent function, resiliently retaining the parts in this relationship. This detent action will be found useful when it is desired to operate the device in the lock-up straight-011 condition.

It will be seen that I have described a relatively simple construction, 'which may be particularly attractive from the point of view of requiring fewer parts than previous constructions. Regardless of the fewer parts, reversible ratchet action is readily selected merely by dipping the tang to a particular side of the handle axis, and the universality of ratchet action is, if anything, extended over that in previous constructions.

While I have described the invention in detail for the preferred form shown, it will be understood that modications may he made within the scope of the invention as dened in the claims which follow.

l claim:

1. l'n a ratcheting device of the character indicated, a handle including a bali-retainer cage lixedly carried thereby, said cage having an arcuate slot therein, ratchet means including a ball movably retained by said cage and iixedly carrying a tool-driving tang projecting generally radially of said ball andthrough said slot, one-way engaging pawl means retained by said handle and engageable with said ball, said pawl means having a thrustreceiving axis oriented substantially normal to the general plane of movement of said tang in said slot, and said slot being suiciently elongated on either side of said axis to permit one-way ratchet engagement selectively on one side of the axis of said tang or on the other side of the axis of said tang upon merely shifting the axis of said tang in said slot.

2. ln a device of the character indicated, universal reversible-ratchet tool-actuating means, comprising a frame including a ball-retaining cage and having an arcuate slot therein extending eiectively 180 degrees on a great circle of the ball-retaining center and symmetrically on both sides of a longitudinal axis of said device, a ball freely rotatable in and retained by said cage and including a tool-attaching tang projecting radially with respect to the axis of said ball and through said slot, and one-wayengaging pawl means acting between said ball and said frame and having a fixed uni-directional thrust-sustaining axis transverse to the general plane of said slot.

3. in a device of the character indicated, a handle and a ball-retaining cage xedly carried at one end of said handle, said cage having an arcuate slot on the axis of said handle and extending substantially in a single arc on both sides of said axis, a ball rotatably retained by said cage and including a radially projecting tool-adapting tang extending through said slot, arcuate ratchet teeth on said ball and extending generally in great-circle paths, e'ach said path being substantially in a plane including the axis of said tang, a ratchet pawl carried by said handle and spring-urged for one-Way engagement with said teeth, said pawl being retained by said handle at a location on 'the other side of said ball with respect to the center of symmetry of said slot.

4. In a device of the character indicated, a handle including a bail-retaining cage tixedly carried at one end of said handle, said cage having an arcuate slot on the axis 'o'f 'said handle and extending substantially in a single arc on both sides of said axis, a ball rotatably retained by said cage and including a radially projecting tooldriving tang extending through said slot, arcuate ratchet teeth on said ball and extending generally in great-circle paths, each said path being substantially in a plane including the axis of said tang, a ratchet pawl carried by said handle vand spring-urged for one-way engagement with said teeth, said pawl engaging said ball substantially on the axis of said handle, and said ball being cut off substantially transverse to the axis of said tang and on the side of said ball remote from said tang, whereby said pawl may cooperate with the cut-ofi part of said ball to provide detent retention of the straight-on orientation of said tang with respect to the handle axis.

5. in a device of the character indicated, a handle including a ball-retaining cage tixedly carried at one end of said handle, said cage having an arcuate slot on the axis of said handle and extending substantially in a single arc on both sides of said axis, a ball rotatably retained by said cage and including a radially projecting tool-driving tang extending through said slot, a ratchet pau/1 carried by said handle and spring-urged for oneway engagement with said ball, said pawl engaging said ball substantially on the axis of said handle, and said ball being cut ott substantially transverse to the axis of said tang and on the side of said ball remote from said tang, whereby said pawl may cooperate with the cut-oil? part of said ball to provide detent retention of the straight-on orientation of said tang with respect to the handle axis. i

6. in a device of the character indicated, a handle and a ball-retaining cage xedly carried at one end of said handle, said cage having an arcuate slot on the axis ot said handle and extending substantially in a single arc on both sides of said axis, a ball rotatably retained by said cage and including a radially projecting tool-adapting tang extending through said slot, arcuate ratchet teeth on said ball and extending generally in great-circle paths, each said path being substantially in a plane including the axis of said tang, a ratchet pawl carried by said handle and spring-urged for one-way engagement with said teeth, said pawl being retained by said handle at a location on the other side of said ball with respect to the center of symmetry of said slot, the end of said pawl opposite the tang-projecting end thereof being locally attened, whereby said pawl may ride the ilattened area and thus provide a detent-retaining function for said tang for one orientation of said pawl in said slot.

7. In a device of the character indicated, a handle and a ball-retaining cage xedly carried at one end of said handle, said cage having an -arcuate slot on the axis of said handle and extending substantially in a single arc on both sides of said axis, a ball rotatably retained by said cage and including a radially projecting tool-adapting tang extending through said slot, arcuate ratchet teeth on said ball and extending generally in great-circle paths, e-ach said path being substantially in a plane including the axis of said tang, a ratchet pawl carried by said handle and spring-urged for one-way engagement with said teeth, said pawl being retained by said handle at a location on the other side of said ball with respect to the center of symmetry of said slot, said tang having a substantially square cross-section adjacent said slot, and the width of said slot at the location substantially in line with the axis of said handle being reduced to receive said squared section and lock the same against rotation.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,261,092 Allen Apr. 2, 1918 1,670,547 North May 22, 1928 2,092,345 Yuasa Sept. 7, 1937 2,503,373 Browning et al. Apr. 11, 1950 2,656,865 Bright Oct. '27, 1953 2,660,911 Queitzsch Dec. l, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 610,903 France June 21, 1926 

